~ Good Things ~

Good Morning Friends & Folk!

a very happy Thursday to you all ~

Isn't this mid-October weather fabulous? 

well, it is here in beautiful old Virginia!

2 days in a row I have been wearing 

socks and long pants and a long sleeved shirt ~ seems weird not to be barefoot!

So ~

I have been stitching on models...

are you like me and have so many project bags for your WIPS?

I love this one...

it is from my talented friend Vitoria Gable at

 Stitch N Button <---click br="" here="">

I love sugar skulls and anything Dia de los Muertos 

and just had to keep this one for myself!

I mean just look at the quality and detail...

and that zipper pull is to DIE for {pun intended}

💀

here is the lining fabric

 seen through the heavy vinyl front: 

and here is the back!

🌼 ♥ 🌺 ♥ 🏵 ♥ 💮 ♥ 🏵 ♥ 🌺 ♥ 🌼

I am almost finished with this cross stitch design..

I named it 'Indian Summer' when I designed it in August,

so the name is staying even though I will be releasing it in a few days!

my gorgeous scissor fob also came from Vicki ~

there are so many cool things in her Etsy shop...

fobs....scissors....needle minders....project bags!

I have to finish this corn, 

one more corn cob and one more pumpkin on this.

I'm stitching it on my 30ct. Old Farmhouse Linen

using 2 strands of DMC threads over 2 threads of linen ~

 I like to switch between two of my favorite antique hoops when I work,

it helps the linen to keep from getting too marked by the hoops.

That's it for today!

what are you working on?

stitching? punching? hooking?

beading? embroidery?

there is so much creativity in each of us...

hoping you use a little bit of yours today!

Blessings from the Farm 

~ Lori

~ A New Design Finish! ~

 Hello Friends & Folk ~

I have finished my latest work in progress!

Here is

' Possessed by the Needle '

the inspiration for this design came about one day 

while Joan & I were having a conversation about something-or-another...

{can't remember what} and she suggested this.

and I thought it would make a great little stitch!

it reads:

possessed by the needle

enchanted by the thread

Elezabeth Curtiss   Her Work 1782

Stratford. Conn.

the name Elezabeth Curtiss is one from my hometown of Stratford, CT {Conn.}

the strange spelling of her name is what drew me to it, 

and dear Elezabeth was the daughter of one of the town's founding fathers.

I chose to include a squirrel & acorn ~

as my Mom feeds many of the neighborhood squirrels in Stratford...

as well as a brown headed Cowbird holding a needle sitting atop a potted fern.

Also the initials E.C. and a few generic motif of flora & fauna ~

 

The darker lettering is stitched over one ~ 

because I love to stitch over one and love how it ages my work. 

I also added a cartouche of vines that holds a pumpkin 

& a kettle and teacup just for fun.

don't you love the little ladye's festive dress and tophat?

she holds a tiny wreath in her hands...

a simple sampler begs for an un-fussy finish,

so I chose to add a backing of black reproduction Civil War era calico,

and brought the edges to the front of the sampler and stitched them down...

 

here are the particulars:

Linen ~ 32ct Tin Roof from Weeks Dye Works 

Threads: 

WDW ~ Kohl, Bullfrog, Havana, Pelican Gray, Lichen, Sand, Caper

GAST ~ Pumpkin Pie

I am in the midst of charting this now, 

and will provide a stitch count for it once it is listed in my Etsy shop ~

{hoping to release it Friday evening}

 Hoping you love it as much as I do!

Blessings from the Farm

 ~ Lori

~ Sitting & Stitching a Spell ~

~ Hello Friends & Folk ~

 it is hotter than the hinges of Hell here today!

... our chickens are panting and the dogs 

well, they are trying to find the zippers to their fur-suits to take them off!

thankfully,

the air conditioning has been a relief indoors ~

and so I've been working on this little stitch

wanting to make a companion piece to my little

 Rest Thy Scissors pattern & box;

I wanted to use some of my own fabric that I designed, 'candle light walk' 

{available HERE}

love it!!

stuffed it with some of Peter's organic sawdust,

and added Dames of the Needle's fabulous mini pom-pom trim in 'Colonial Tea' 

{www.damesoftheneedle.com}

here is the finished back, 

with fussy-cut fabric to showcase my candle light witch, and the trim all stitched on;

and here is what Peter made for it ~

thee sweetest little spooky pincushion chair 

to match my Rest Thy Scissors box!

teensy-tiny little spool feet!

I am working on more seasonal designs for this little chair, so it can stay out and be YOUR companion all the year through ~

the linen I used is 32ct Weekd Dye Works "Tin Roof"

threads used: 

Weeks Dye Works: Pamlico, Kohl & Tin Roof 

Gentle Art Threads: Sarsaparilla

2 threads over 2 strands of linen

stitch count: 42w x 37h

PDF / paper pattern & finished pincushion chair

will be available soon ;)

Blessings from the Farm

 ~ Lori

~ Basket of Jacks ~

a perfect little offering for stitchers on this, 

... the First Day of Autumn ~

Basket of Jacks 

cross stitch pattern from ©Notforgotten Farm™

linen: 36ct Runestone from Dixie Samplar Hand Dyed Linens

threads: The Gentle Art

stitch count: 89 x 131

model stitched by Heather Stevens

patterns available now in our Etsy shop as PDF or paper/mailed versions.

A Blessed Mabon to you all,

Happy Autumn, Happy Fall!

🌛

  

Blessings from the Farm

 ~ Lori

~ Inspiration from the Farm ~

Joan & I have been hooking our large-cut jarrahdale pumpkins

{well, they are torn strips actually...ok, torn & hand-cut.}

Our 1-inch-plus strips were torn first,  then cut in half, 

so I really don't even know what width they are

...just all different!

I drew them out for us on linen, they are approx. 15" across. 

Joan's is almost all hooked and I'll see hers Saturday when she comes out to the shop.

this is mine, all hooked and ready to be 'finish-finished' ~ below.

not sure if it will be a pillow, or mounted onto board, or.....who knows.

~ we'll see.

After seeing one being hooked at the Sauder show last month, 

this was our inspiration:

 

I chose beautiful wools from The Wool Studio 

{thank you Rebecca and family!} 

you can see the textures in the photo here ~

 

I save pumpkin stems each year for projects such as this ~

I chose this one, and Joan has her choice from my stash...

 

 

we'll show them to you side-by-side soon, after they are completely finished :)

Next, I want to hook a 3 dimensional pumpkin...like a round one.

I'll have to figure that one out ~ but I think I can ;) 

&

 here are a few gorgeous photos from my Pinterest boards

to perhaps inspire you to hook a pumpkin too!

enjoy...

 

Wishing you all a wonderful late-Summer day 

filled with Nature's inspiration and profound creativity!

 

Blessings from the Farm

 ~ Lori

~ Drawing Inspiration ~

So I'm already thinking of my next rug to design & hook.

can you tell what my inspiration is?

here's a hint...

the Crow Knows!

Here are a few rugs that have taken up residence in my pea-brain lately...

 ((( all photos below have been 'borrowed' from Pinterest and I may not have all information )))

Magdelina Briener

not sure who' this is but it's cute.

again, not sure of designer/maker but love it.

by Saundra of Woodland junction

by Saundra of Woodland Junction

love their eyes....maker/designer unknown to me.

wool applique, but the concept is beautiful.

this one is wonderful ~ love their blue feet!

Rainy day today... loverly to stay home and hook.

on to the FINISH of hooking When Pigs Fly 

& start on some-kind of sketching for a crow rug.

Joan & I are also challenging each other to hook a Jarrahdale Pumpkin 

using hand torn strips with beautiful wools purchased from Rebecca Erb

...we saw one being hooked at the Sauder show by sweet Sondra Ives

 {designed by the talented Alice LaMar Fraizer}and have been smitten with it ever since! ~ 

I will draw up my own wonky version of a large pumpkin for us and we will start on our pompions 

{French for pumpkins lol} after our show here on the 16th, so stay tuned for our escapades!

⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷

Keeping the entire USA in our thoughts and prayers

....for no more rain, no more fire.

and no more hate.

☮

Blessings from the Farm

 ~ Lori

~ Not So Tiny Stitches ~

 Hello!

...and Happy Tuesday to you all!

between the intolerable heat and dry weather,

I am holed-up in my old farmhouse ~ working on Autumnal things 

and dreaming of falling leaves, pumpkins and crisp, cool nights...

I am such a needlwork-butterfly ~ flitting from this-to-that!

so today I am working on another new cross stitch design 

that will include this house 

~ stitched in shades of pumpkin!

{ok, DMC 782}

but instead of stitching on smaller count linen,

I am LOVING this larger count linen that I picked up at a quaint little stitching shop called:

HodgePodge

 located in Strasburg, PA on our travels last week.

here is the link to their FB page ~ click HERE

the package that this came in says 18ct Aida ~ Lambswool.

but we all know it is linen ;)

 

 and I am stitching on it using 3 strands of floss over two threads of linen...

it is working out to be more like a 20ct though,...{over 2 threads would be a 10ct}

easy to see, big and super-fast!

don't mind my penciled-on ruler,

those lines are meant for other projects ~ not this one.

 

the hoop I'm using is one my sweet Mom gave me while in CT ~

it is a "Queen" hoop with coin-screw closure.

 

a perfect size for the project I'm working on! 

 ~ thanks Mom!!!

 

Hoping you all are staying comfy and safe in this horrible heat.

please remember to provide water to your outdoor friends

 

Blessings from the Farm 

~ Lori